Everything about Haida Language totally explained
The
Haida language (
X̲aat Kíl, X̲aadas Kíl, X̲aayda Kil) is the language of the
Haida people. It contains well over 30
consonants, but only eight
vowels. Formerly linked to the
Na-Dené languages, it's usually considered to be a
language isolate, especially now that the Na-Dené languages have been linked to
Yeniseian in Siberia. In addition to finding the link between Yeniseian and Na-Dené compelling, this seminar came to the conclusion that the comparison "shows conclusively that Haida, sometimes associated with Na-Dene, isn't related." nearly all of whom are older adults. Although the number of native speakers has diminished along the years, according to a 2001
Canadian Census there are now about 275 speakers in
British Columbia alone, and with revived interest in the language, this figure is expected to grow.
Currently Haida citizens and friends in all three dialect communities are working to revitalizing the language. In
Skidegate, fluent speakers gather on a daily basis to work on the southern or Skidegate dialect and have produced a large series of recordings. In
Masset, a group of younger learners is working with their fluent elders to reintegrate the northern or Masset dialect into their daily lives. In Alaska, the community conducts regular language classes for teens and adults, and has built a website complete with on-line recordings of the Kaigani dialect.
Sounds
Consonants
- Inside words, the plain stops can be voiced.
- Technically [d̥͡l] isn't an affricate; it's released as an approximant rather than a fricative.
- For some speakers, [t͡ʃ] occurs only at the beginning of syllables, while [t͡s] doesn't occur there. They are the same phoneme. A similar situation applies with [t͡s’] and [t͡ʃ’].
- Instead of an epiglottal fricative, the Masset dialect uses an epiglottal trill.
Tone
Haida features phonemic
tone, the nature of which differs by dialect. In Kaigani the system is one of
pitch accent, with at most one syllable per word featuring high tone; in Masset and Skidegate tone is contrastive in
heavy syllables. All the above systems feature two tones: high and low.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Haida Language'.
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